It’s been a pretty busy month for business news coming out of the courtrooms and agencies. We’ve got updates on mileage rates, union election rules—oh, and a little lawsuit before the Supreme Court you might have heard about.
From the “think fast!” department: The IRS announced last week that it will increase the allowable rates for business mileage… effective this Friday. Oy.
And speaking of fast things, the National Labor Relations Board has proposed new rules for union elections that will significantly speed up the process. Obviously, many businesses aren’t going to be fond of this proposal, but the good news is that public comments are still invited on the proposal, so you can make your voice heard through August 21.
A U.S. District Court ruled against rent-to-own megachain Aaron’s in a sexual harassment case, and awarded $95 in damages to the plaintiff, which could be a new record high. Of course, since damages in federal sexual harassment cases are capped, the total amount will probably be closer to $41.6 million. Still, that’s plenty high to be a reminder not to tolerate any kind of sexual harassment in your workplace.
And, as you probably already know, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the 1.5 million women who have signed on to a class-action sex-discrimination lawsuit against Wal-Mart can’t, in fact, sue as a class. Expect lots and lots of individual cases against Wal-Mart in the future.
What are your thoughts on the legal news this month? Let us know in the comments!